The arrival of summer may be a date on the calendar, but I believe the arrival of the warmest season of the year coincides with the first hatch of black flies (“Buffalo Gnats”).

These pests are brutal if you aren’t prepared for them. Why are they so pesky? They feed on blood and are attracted to their victims due to the release of carbon monoxide in the breath of an animal or the heat from openings such as ears, noses and mouths.

They hatch after the ground has received plenty of rain and the first series of truly warm days have occurred. The larva hatch from waterways like small streams and rivers.

Black flies are at their worst on sunny days with no breeze. Even a fairly slight breeze can impact their ability to fly accurately. If the wind is still, and you’re outside in the sun after the first hatch of these pests, prepare to be uncomfortable, distracted and continually pestered.

Why do the black flies continue to dive bomb us and create painful welts on our heads, faces and necks? Their method of drawing blood is using cutting instruments that are part of their mouth parts to create an open wound from which they can extract their meal. They get entangled in our hair to avoid being blown away by the wind. They continue to try to make that wound larger to have greater opportunity to feed.

It’s cringeworthy and gross.

I learned about these pests in the 1990s when talking with University of Wisconsin entomologist and the head of the UW-Madison Insect Diagnostic Lab Phil Pellitteri, who described them in detail to me. Pellitteri retired in 2014, but my discussion with him I’ll forever recall. I’ve since read numerous scientific articles and reports regarding black flies from outdoor agencies such as the Department of Natural Resources. The black flies can be found anywhere in the Midwest. 

Through many years of my personal interest being outdoors, bicycling, being an avid walker and volunteering as a Boy Scout leader, I’ve tried a number of remedies to keep the black flies away. Vanilla extract has been the best defense for me personally. I put considerable amounts of this liquid extract, which usually includes a considerable percentage of alcohol and some brown dye, in my hands and then lightly wipe it across all areas of my head, even dabbing some on my hat.

I’ve never been completely let down by the vanilla extract. It has left brown streaks on my skin, as if I badly applied make-up. I’m willing to look foolish to avoid the “Buffalo Gnats.”

Other fixes that have worked are Absorbine Jr. and the use of dryer sheets hanging partially out of the back of a baseball cap to cover the back of my neck. Because Absorbine Junior is an over-the counter-medication, I’ve tried not to recommend it as much as vanilla and the strategic placement of dryer sheets.

There are some over-the-counter bug sprays that people swear-by to keep the black flies away. For one reason or another, they didn’t work for me. I’ve used all-natural products and products with 25% or more of DEET. Neither of those, vs. black flies, were as effective for me as vanilla extract.

To each their own.

There have been times and I’ve been in places where black flies are so thick, there’s nothing stopping them. There are hatches of black flies in places from Arkansas to Alaska that have been known to kill larger mammals such as livestock, deer and caribou.

The black flies retreat to land in trees, bushes and the grass at night. They also, thankfully, do not like to be indoors. If they get trapped in a house it’s because they were following their prey and didn’t sense the change in atmosphere when that prey went indoors.

My main concern has always been to have enough of whatever repellant available to provide to children if they have outdoor activities from a playdate to a baseball, volleyball or soccer games. Each summer as my son rode his bike to the pool, he took his backpack for his towel and other possessions. In a pocket of that backpack was a plastic sandwich bag with a small bottle of vanilla extract, some skin wipes and a few Band Aids. He said that on days when he stopped his bike at the skateboard park, ball diamond or community park, the bug repellent kit saved him. After sharing with friends a few times, he was often flagged down by friends and acquaintances for “some of that vanilla stuff.”

The one redeeming thing about having to deal with black flies is that they’re only active during the best weather. A bit of prevention can save a wonderful day spent outdoors.

— Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.